UNITED KINGDOM / AGILITYPR.NEWS / September 30, 2020 / Unite the union has today (30 September) reacted to proposals that 42 jobs are to go at Mahle Engine Systems based in Kilmarnock following consultation talks opening this week. The plant which currently employs 181 workers makes high-quality components for motorsport engines, combustion engines and electric vehicles. The job losses are expected to begin by the end of October with the remainder in the New Year.

The German owned company announced in mid-September that it was planning to reduce its workforce by 7,600 people in response to the industry collapse caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. Europe accounts for around 3,700 of the job losses, of which 2,000 are in Germany with the rest across Europe. Mahle has specifically cited a weakening of the global demand in passenger car and truck sales with vehicle markets not expected to recover for some years as the primary cause for the massive job cuts.

On 18^th September Unite Scotland and the First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, wrote to the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, calling for ‘urgent intervention’ by the UK Government to preserve highly-skilled jobs in the UK aerospace sector along with the Leaders of the Devolved Administrations of Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales.  The letter called for the immediate establishment of a UK Aerospace Taskforce in order that government, business and trade unions collectively work together to support businesses, workers and communities.

Unite Regional Industrial Officer, Paul Bennett said: “The announcement by Mahle Engine Systems that around a quarter of the jobs are to go at its Kilmarnock plant is a hammer blow. Unite has been in ongoing talks with Mahle to prevent compulsory redundancies after the parent company said that it was cutting around 3,700 jobs in Europe. We continue to do everything possible to stop the 42 job cuts in Kilmarnock and Unite is calling on government at all levels to support us in this fight. Thousands of highly-skilled Scottish manufacturing jobs and those supported in the supply-chain are on the brink of being lost forever. More support is needed by government if we are to prevent the tsunami of job cuts on the horizon.”